This painting represents a Roman Eagle
also called the 'Aquila". The eagle (aquila) was the bird of
Jupiter. In ancient times the eagle was a symbol of strength and
courage, and immortality. The eagle was believed to be the king of
the birds that could ascend above the storm, and become the
messenger of the gods. According to ancient mythology the eagle
would carry the soul into the presence of the gods, Zeus to the
Greeks, Jupiter to the Roman, and Odin to the tribes of Germania.

The silver eagle was the
ensign of the Roman Legion and the symbol of its power. The legatus was
the officer in charge, and he would assign an aquilifer who was the
soldier that would carry the aquila (eagle) into battle. If the eagle was
captured the legion would disband. It is interesting that Julius Caesar
personally sanctified the eagle when the legion was brought forth.

On one
of the legion standards the powerful talons of
the eagle are gripping golden thunderbolts, as the eagle stands ready for flight against all enemies of Rome. At the very top of the standard above the
eagle is a gold bar with the inscription SPQR (Senatus Populus Romanus)
honoring the Senate and the People. The
ancient Roman eagle is important in the study of
Biblical archaeology.

As with the ancient Hebrews the eagle symbolizes
divinity, the bird that comes from above.

Deuteronomy 28:49 - The LORD shall bring a nation against
thee from far, from the end of the earth, [as swift] as the
eagle flieth; a nation whose tongue thou shalt not
understand;

The silver eagle was the ensign of the
Roman Legion and the symbol of its power.

AQUILA. The eagle, the principal ensign of the
Roman legion (Plin. H. N. X. 5.), made of silver or bronze, and with
expanded wings, as shown above.

The Aquila
was the eagle standard of a Roman legion, carried by a
special grade legionary known as an Aquilifer. One eagle standard
was carried by each legion. Pliny the Elder (H.N. x.16) enumerates
five animals displayed on Roman military ensigns: the eagle, the
wolf, the minotaur, the horse, and the boar. In the second
consulship of Gaius Marius (104 BC) the four quadrupeds were laid
aside as standards, the eagle being alone retained. It was made of
silver, or bronze, with outstretched wings, but was probably of a
relatively small size, since a standard-bearer (signifer) under
Julius Caesar is said in circumstances of danger to have wrenched
the eagle from its staff and concealed it in the folds of his
girdle. Under the later emperors the eagle was carried with the
legion, a legion being on that account sometimes called aquila (Hirt.
Bell. Hisp. 30). Each cohort had for its own ensign the serpent or
dragon, which was woven on a square piece of cloth textilis anguis,
elevated on a gilt staff, to which a cross-bar was adapted for the
purpose, and carried by the draconarius. [Wikipedia]

The
centurio also chose the standard bearer, or ensign of his
century {signifer or vexillarius). Each century was also divided
into bodies often, each of which was commanded by a decurio or
decanus. The first centurion of the triarii was called primipilus ;
he had charge of the eagle, and he commanded the whole legion under
the tribunes. The light-armed troops were also formed into bands or
centuries, each of which was commanded by a centurion. [Rome]

"The centurion rode in front of the eagle."

The Eagle (Aquila) was a military ensign usually carried by an
aquilifer

The Eagle was the principal ensign of
the legions of Rome

The eagle symbolized strength,
courage, farsightedness and immortality. It is considered to be the
king of the air and the messenger of the highest Gods.
Mythologically, it is connected by the Greeks with the God Zeus, by
the Romans with Jupiter, by the Germanic tribes with Odin
[Wikipedia]

Vexilloid of the Roman Empire.

The Roman
Legion. The first of the cohorts, which bore the name of
cohors millitaria, was superior to the others, both with respect to
the number and quality of the soldiers; it had also the charge of
the eagle and the standard of the emperor. Its strength was 1105
foot-soldiers, and 132 cuirassiers on horseback, and its post was on
the right of the first line. The remaining four cohorts of the first
line contained each 555 infantry and 66 cavalry, and the five
cohorts of the second line contained each the same number of
infantry and cavalry. Thus the whole legion was composed of 6100
foot-soldiers and 726 horsemen, not including either the triarii or
the light troops. [Rome]

The apotheosis of Titus (Divus) on the
upper portion of the Arch of Titus (Arous Titi). He is being carried
up to heaven.

APOTHEOSIS, the enrolment of a mortal among the
gods...When all this is done, the others set fire to it on every
side, which easily catches hold of the faggots and aromatics and
from the highest and smallest story, as from a pinnacle, an eagle is
let loose to mount into the sky as the fire ascends, which is
believed by the Romans to carry the soul of the emperor from earth
to heaven ; and from that time he is worshipped with the other gods.
[Rome]

The apotheosis of Augustus on an onyx
stone in the Royal Museum of Paris

Coin bearing the eagle (aquila) symbol
for ancient Rome

COINS. In ancient Rome it was common to see on
medals struck in honour of an apotheosis an altar with fire on it,
and an eagle, the bird of Jupiter, with thunderbolt taking flight
into the air. The number of medals of this description is very
numerous. Certain coins trace the names of sixty individuals, who
received the honours of an apotheosis, from the time of Julius
Caesar to that of Constantine the Great. [Rome]

Eagle in the pediment of the Temple
dedicated to Jupiter with outstretched wings

Guard;
Sentinels. Out of the twenty maniples of Principes and
Triarii in each legion, two were appointed to take charge of the
broad passage or street called Prindpia, extending right across the
camp in front of the tents of the tribunes. This being the place of
general resort during the day, and, as we know from various sources,
the part of the camp in which the altars and the eagles stood, great
pains were taken that it should be kept perfectly clean and
regularly watered, a labour which would rail very light when
portioned out among four maniples.

Aquilifer bearing standard with eagle

AQUILIFER. ensign of a Roman legion, who carried
the eagle. (Goes. B. G. v. 37. Suet. Aug. 10.). There was but one
aquilifer to each legion, though there were many signiferi, or
standard bearers. (Veget. Mil. ii. 13. Compare Tac. Ann. i. 39. and
61.) The example is taken from the Column of Trajan, on which an
ensign carrying the eagle is several times represented, with the
skin of a wild beast over his head and back, in the same manner as
here shown. [Rome]

Roman Legion bearing eagle ensign

Signa militaria. Military standards or
ensigns, including, in reality, the eagle (aquila), which was the
general ensign of the entire legion; but more commonly used with
reference to the different standards belonging to each separate
maniple and cohort, as distinct from the eagle. Cat. ii. 6. Tac.
Hist. 11. 29. Tac. Ann. i. 18.) The illustration, a medal, shows the
eagle between two standards of cohorts ; the name of each ensign is
enumerated in the Classed Index, and an example given under its own
denomination. [Rich]

Roman coin of Vespasian (76 AD) bearing eagle

The eagle and the lion above the column capital

A bronze eagle and dolphin were at
the center of the chariot races of ancient Rome.

The Bible also mentions he 'Eagle"

Ezekiel
1:10 - As for the likeness of their faces, they four had the
face of a man, and the face of a lion, on the right side: and they
four had the face of an ox on the left side; they four also had the
face of an eagle.

Ezekiel
10:14 - And every one had four faces: the first face [was]
the face of a cherub, and the second face [was] the face of a man,
and the third the face of a lion, and the fourth the face of an eagle.

Jeremiah
49:16 - Thy terribleness hath deceived thee, [and] the pride
of thine heart, O thou that dwellest in the clefts of the rock, that
holdest the height of the hill: though thou shouldest make thy nest
as high as the eagle, I will bring thee down from
thence, saith the LORD.

Revelation 4:7 - And the first beast [was] like a lion, and
the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a
man, and the fourth beast [was] like a flying eagle.

Micah 1:16
- Make thee bald, and poll thee for thy delicate children; enlarge
thy baldness as the eagle; for they are gone into
captivity from thee.

Ezekiel
17:3 - And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; A great eagle
with great wings, longwinged, full of feathers, which had divers
colours, came unto Lebanon, and took the highest branch of the
cedar:

Ezekiel
17:7 - There was also another great eagle with
great wings and many feathers: and, behold, this vine did bend her
roots toward him, and shot forth her branches toward him, that he
might water it by the furrows of her plantation.

Deuteronomy 28:49 - The LORD shall bring a nation against
thee from far, from the end of the earth, [as swift] as the
eagle flieth; a nation whose tongue thou shalt not
understand;

Revelation 12:14 - And to the woman were given two wings of
a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness,
into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and
half a time, from the face of the serpent.

Leviticus 11:13 - And these [are they which] ye shall have
in abomination among the fowls; they shall not be eaten, they [are]
an abomination: the eagle, and the ossifrage, and the
ospray,

Deuteronomy 32:11 - As an eagle stirreth up
her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings,
taketh them, beareth them on her wings:

Jeremiah
49:22 - Behold, he shall come up and fly as the eagle,
and spread his wings over Bozrah: and at that day shall the heart of
the mighty men of Edom be as the heart of a woman in her pangs.

Obediah 1:4
- Though thou exalt [thyself] as the eagle, and though
thou set thy nest among the stars, thence will I bring thee down,
saith the LORD.

Habakkuk
1:8 - Their horses also are swifter than the leopards, and
are more fierce than the evening wolves: and their horsemen shall
spread themselves, and their horsemen shall come from far; they
shall fly as the eagle [that] hasteth to eat.

Proverbs
23:5 - Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? for
[riches] certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an
eagle toward heaven.

Hosea 8:1
- [Set] the trumpet to thy mouth. [He shall come] as an eagle
against the house of the LORD, because they have transgressed my
covenant, and trespassed against my law.

Job 39:27
- Doth the eagle mount up at thy command, and make her
nest on high?

Jeremiah
48:40 - For thus saith the LORD; Behold, he shall fly as an
eagle, and shall spread his wings over Moab.

Job 9:26
- They are passed away as the swift ships: as the eagle
[that] hasteth to the prey.

Proverbs
30:19 - The way of an eagle in the air; the
way of a serpent upon a rock; the way of a ship in the midst of the
sea; and the way of a man with a maid.

Deuteronomy 14:12 - But these [are they] of which ye shall
not eat: the eagle, and the ossifrage, and the ospray,

The Word "Caesar" is Mentioned many Times
in the Bible
(Note: It was not always Tiberius because he died in 37 A.D.)

Luke 3:1 - Now in the
fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar,
Pontius Pilate being governor of Judaea, and Herod being tetrarch of
Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of Ituraea and of the
region of Trachonitis, and Lysanias the tetrarch of Abilene.

Matthew 22:21 - They
say unto him, Caesar's. Then saith he unto them,
Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's.

Luke 3:1
- Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar,
Pontius Pilate being governor of Judaea, and Herod being tetrarch of
Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of Ituraea and of the
region of Trachonitis, and Lysanias the tetrarch of Abilene,

John 19:15
- But they cried out, Away with [him], away with [him], crucify him.
Pilate saith unto them, Shall I crucify your King? The chief priests
answered, We have no king but Caesar.

John 19:12
- And from thenceforth Pilate sought to release him: but the Jews
cried out, saying, If thou let this man go, thou art not
Caesar's friend: whosoever maketh himself a king speaketh
against Caesar.

Luke 20:25
- And he said unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar
the things which be Caesar's, and unto God the things
which be God's.

Mark 12:14
- And when they were come, they say unto him, Master, we know that
thou art true, and carest for no man: for thou regardest not the
person of men, but teachest the way of God in truth: Is it lawful to
give tribute to Caesar, or not?

Mark 12:17
- And Jesus answering said unto them, Render to Caesar
the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things
that are God's. And they marvelled at him.

Acts 27:24
- Saying, Fear not, Paul; thou must be brought before Caesar:
and, lo, God hath given thee all them that sail with thee.

Luke 23:2
- And they began to accuse him, saying, We found this [fellow]
perverting the nation, and forbidding to give tribute to
Caesar, saying that he himself is Christ a King.

Acts 11:28
- And there stood up one of them named Agabus, and signified by the
Spirit that there should be great dearth throughout all the world:
which came to pass in the days of Claudius Caesar.

Acts 25:11
- For if I be an offender, or have committed any thing worthy of
death, I refuse not to die: but if there be none of these things
whereof these accuse me, no man may deliver me unto them. I appeal
unto Caesar.

Acts 25:21
- But when Paul had appealed to be reserved unto the hearing of
Augustus, I commanded him to be kept till I might send him to
Caesar.

Acts 17:7
- Whom Jason hath received: and these all do contrary to the decrees
of Caesar, saying that there is another king, [one]
Jesus.

Luke 2:1
- And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree
from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be
taxed.

Acts 28:19
- But when the Jews spake against [it], I was constrained to appeal
unto Caesar; not that I had ought to accuse my nation
of.

Matthew
22:17 - Tell us therefore, What thinkest thou? Is it lawful
to give tribute unto Caesar, or not?

Acts 25:8
- While he answered for himself, Neither against the law of the
Jews, neither against the temple, nor yet against Caesar,
have I offended any thing at all.

Acts 26:32
- Then said Agrippa unto Festus, This man might have been set at
liberty, if he had not appealed unto Caesar.

Acts 23:11
- And the night following the Lord stood by him, and said, Be of
good cheer, Paul: for as thou hast testified of me in Jerusalem, so
must thou bear witness also at Rome.

2 Timothy
4:22 - The Lord Jesus Christ [be] with thy spirit. Grace
[be] with you. Amen. <[The second [epistle] unto Timotheus, ordained
the first bishop of the church of the Ephesians, was written from Rome, when Paul was brought before Nero the second
time.]>

Acts 18:2
- And found a certain Jew named Aquila, born in Pontus, lately come
from Italy, with his wife Priscilla; (because that Claudius had
commanded all Jews to depart from Rome:) and came unto
them.

Colossians 4:18 - The salutation by the hand of me Paul.
Remember my bonds. Grace [be] with you. Amen. <[Written from
Rome to Colossians by Tychicus and Onesimus.]>

Ephesians
6:24 - Grace [be] with all them that love our Lord Jesus
Christ in sincerity. Amen. <[To [the] Ephesians written from
Rome, by Tychicus.]>

Philippians 4:23 - The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ [be]
with you all. Amen. <[To [the] Philippians written from Rome,
by Epaphroditus.]>

Acts 28:14
- Where we found brethren, and were desired to tarry with them seven
days: and so we went toward Rome.

Romans 1:15
- So, as much as in me is, I am ready to preach the gospel to you
that are at Rome also.

2 Timothy
1:17 - But, when he was in Rome, he sought me
out very diligently, and found [me].

Daniel 2:40 -
"And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh
in pieces and subdueth all [things]: and as iron that breaketh all these,
shall it break in pieces and bruise."

Acts
23:11 - And the night following the Lord stood by him, and said, Be
of good cheer, Paul: for as thou hast testified of me in Jerusalem, so must
thou bear witness also at Rome.

Bible History Online - What's New - For example the Ishtar Gate, the Entrance to Sargon's Palace, the Arch of Titus, the Pyramid of Gizeh, the Parthenon, Solomon's Temple, and more. Important ...http://www.bible-history.com/biblehistoryonline_whatsnew.php

Rome: Biblical Archaeology - Bible History Links (Ancient Biblical - Arch of Titus Chariot Relief Was Titus an instrument of God in destroying Jerusalem in 70 ...
This second scene on the Arch of Titus reveals the actual triumphal ...http://www.bible-history.com/links.php?cat=36&sub=347&cat_name=Biblical+Archaeology&subcat_name=Rome

Bible History Online - What's New - For example the Ishtar Gate, the Entrance to Sargon's Palace, the Arch of Titus, the Pyramid of Gizeh, the Parthenon, Solomon's Temple, and more. Important ...http://www.bible-history.com/biblehistoryonline_whatsnew.php

The
Black Obelisk. In the 1840's a British man named Austen Henry
Layard had a desire to travel to the Middle East and dig around some of
the strange looking mounds near the City of Mosul. He had heard many
tales about things being found in these mounds. He was looking for any
trace of evidence that would lead him to the lost city of Nineveh, the
capital of the ancient Assyrian Empire. Little did he know that one of
his discoveries would turn Europe upside down with excitement. He
discovered a black limestone monument which is known today as The Black
Obelisk of Shalmaneser III. This discovery brought a new authenticity
and historicity to some of the stories in the Bible. It also gained him
the support of the British Museum, and all the finances he needed to
continue his excavations, and become known as "The Father of
Assyriology."

The
Pilate Inscription. It
wasn't long ago when many scholars were questioning the actual existence
of a Roman Governor with the name of Pontius Pilate, the procurator who
ordered Jesus' crucifixion. In June 1961 Italian archaeologists led by
Dr. Frova were excavating an ancient Roman amphitheatre near
Caesarea-on-the-Sea (Maritima) and uncovered this interesting limestone
block. On the worn face is a monumental inscription which is part of a
larger dedication to Tiberius Caesar which clearly says that it was from
"Pontius Pilate, Prefect of Judea."

The
Megiddo Seal Bearing King Jeroboam's Name.
It is very interesting that the Jasper Seal, found at Tel Megiddo
bearing the name of King Jeroboam who ruled in the Northern Kingdom of
Israel, would contain the symbol for their rival, the Southern Kingdom
of Judah. But in examining all of the circumstances involved and seeing
what the Bible says it is no wonder that the prosperous and victorious
Northern Kingdom of Israel would boast with a symbol of their enemy.

The
Tomb of Cyrus the Great. An inscription on the tomb of the great
Persian monarch read: "O man, whoever you are and wherever you come
from, for I know that you will come--I am Cyrus, son of Cambyses, who
founded the Empire of the Persians and was king of the East. Do not
grudge me this spot of earth which covers my body." - Cyrus".
Is it true that Isaiah the Hebrew prophet mention Cyrus by name almost
200 years before he was born?

Sennacherib's
Hexagonal Prism. This amazing discovery excavated in Nineveh in
the 1830 records the Assyrian king Sennacherib's 8th campaign, which
includes his siege of Jerusalem during the reign of "Hezekiah the
Judahite" in 701 BC. There are 500 lines of writing in the Akkadian
language on this magnificent clay prism. Is the story true that it was
purchased by an American from an antiquities dealer in Baghdad?

Coming SoonThe Ishtar Gate of Babylon.
During the last days of the southern kingdom of Judah the Jews were
taken captive to a distant land called Babylon at the latter part of the
6th century BC. They passed through a beautiful entrance gate made of
mud brick masonry and glazed skin which stood 47 feet tall, commonly
referred to as the Ishtar Gate since its discovery at the turn of the
20th century near modern Baghdad, Iraq. The tall gate was dedicated to
the gods by Nebuchadnezzar King of Babylonia who reigned from 605—562
BC). Is it true that Hitler had it transported to Berlin? Where is the
Ishtar Gate now?

The Bible mentions many
things about people, places and events that happened in history. The
Bible also gives an accurate chronology of those people, places and
events. What is amazing is that modern archaeology has confirmed that
the Bible has never made one error, or given any clear contradictions in
all of its text in matters of historical fact. The paintings and
illustrations below of archaeological discoveries and ruins illustrate
this emphatically.